New Health Concerns About Bannister Federal Complex

Kansas City, Mo. – The Honeywell Plant has produced parts for nuclear weapons at the Bannister Federal Complex in South Kansas City for about 60 years. Plans to construct a $650 million new plant near the Richards Gebaur Air Force Base are awaiting final approval of a tax abatement from the Kansas City, Missouri's city council. The 10-building complex not only houses the plant, which produces non-nuclear components for weapons, but also the General Services Administration and the Department of Energy.

Some opponents of the project say some of the health problems developed by workers at or near the plant have never addressed. The government has been compensating workers from the weapons side of the building for some time. But there are new claims that federal employees who worked the non-production side of the building may have also been exposed to toxins and are suffering health problems.

NBC Action News investigative reporter Russ Ptacek has created a list of current and former workers, as well as contractors and family members who believe they have illnesses that can be linked to toxins. KCUR's Susan B. Wilson talked to him about his research.